Mayflower Halls: Six months in

Six months in and Mayflower appears to hold the prize for the most problems any halls of residence has faced this year.

Freshers moving in had high hopes for the sparkling new blocks of flats which, while being the furthest from campus, promised a night out on the town without needing a taxi, as well as a gym and a shop.

Only one of these promises was kept. Six months in and residents of Mayflower Halls are still without a gym or a shop. Residents are livid.

Mayflower is still without the gym and the shop that it was promised

Ben Harding, Welfare Officer for Mayflower’s JCR, recently posted on the Facebook group:

The university have not given any final opening date for the gym facility in Mayflower Halls, but have stated that it “will be opening this spring.”

But the state of the building work still on site is not promising at all. Mayflower residents appear to be paying extra for something which they may only be able to use for a couple of months, if at all.

Their money appears to have gone towards frequent noise, power outages and water leaks as a result of the ongoing building works.

One student even started a petition, feeling that residents are being “robbed by Mayflower halls”.

The first term saw an onslaught of complaints via the Facebook page including comments about the incredible number of fire alarms in the first few weeks of the first semester.

Emil Ruubel, a first year Engineering student, wrote on the Facebook page merely a few weeks into the semester:

Happy 20th Fire Alarm.

It got to the point where another student, Kevin Madden, wrote:

*insert generic fire alarm status here*

But aside from the issues of the first semester, Mayflower has developed well and has recovered signficantly from most of its issues.

Mayflower has many perks including the fantastic post-it note art that adorns the windows that face onto the courtyard.

Mayflower’s impressive window art, created by residents

Its proximity to the city centre is perfect for the party animal in all of us and West Quay shopping centre is only a five minute walk away for all retail therapy needs.

What’s more, students in Mayflower feel much more integrated into Southampton as a city itself and are more likely to interact with the locals.

As for the way that the halls run, the JCR is something to be boasted about since their dealings with the ongoing building of the gym and the shop show that they are capable of keeping students happy.

Ben Harding posted on the Facebook page:

For those holding a Sport and Wellbeing membership, you will be entitled to use the Active Nation facilities at the Quays Swimming and Diving complex, the Bitterne Leisure Centre and the Chamberlayne Leisure Centre for no additional fee.

As a resident of Mayflower myself, I would say that, despite all of the problems, the halls do have warm sense of community.

The residents support each other through fire alarms and stolen letters from the sign that once said ‘Mayflower Halls’.

Whether ‘M flower Halls’ or ‘R Halls’, Mayflower is not as bad as some make it out to be.

What are your thoughts about Mayflower Halls? Let us know in the comments!